Die Premiere von "Ruf der Wildnis II " beim Wunderwelten Festival in Friedrichshafen am Bodensee.

( English version see below)

Es dauerte einige Wochen in denen Emil und ich intensiv an unsere neuen Multivisionshow “Ruf der Wildnis II” arbeiteten. Dann war es soweit. Die Premiere beim Wunderwelten Festival am 7. November 2010 in Friedrichshafen. “Ruf der Wildnis” – eine Homage an Jack London, der meine Leidenschaft für die Wildnis Nordamerikas geweckt hat.  Es war ein unglaubliches Gefühl zu sehen, wie sich das Graf Zeppelin Haus immer weiter füllte bis ich zuletzt vor einem Ausverkauften Saal stand und 1000 Besucher vor mir hatte. Die gewaltige Leinwand von über 12 m Breite ließ die Bilder zur vollen Wirkung kommen. In der neuen Show hatte ich die Gelegenheit, viele meiner Erlebnisse in der Wildnis Nordamerikas – zwischen Alaska und Baja Kalifornien, Mexiko – an die Zuschauer weiterzugeben.

Visions of the Arctic event with Earthjustice in the Times Building in New York City

Auf WunderWelten folgte dann eine Tournee in der Schweiz, Vorträge in Nord Amerika und weitere Festivals, so dass ich in den letzten 3 Monaten an über 7000 Besucher meine Bilder und Erlebnisse weitergeben konnte. Ich muss ehrlich sagen, es ist anstrengend, wenn man oft Tag um Tag auf der Bühne steht. Aber ich habe es lieben gelernt, denn das Medium des “Live-Vortrags” ist etwas besonderes. Menschen nehmen die Bilder, die Erlebnisse und auch die Botschaft ganz anders wahr, als z.B. in einem Dokumentarfilm aus dem Fernsehen oder etwa im Kino.

Florian speaking at a Earthjustice event in New York

Für mich war es ganz besonders, die eindrücklichsten Erlebnisse unserer Reisen und Expeditionen für unsere Multivisions-Show aufzuarbeiten. Es gab mir nämlich die Chance mich an die verschiedenen Orte zurückzuversetzten und mich daran zu erinnern, was ich damals gefühlt habe. In den Vorbereitungen der Show achten wir ganz besonders auf die Bilderfolge um die Witterungen und Lichtstimmungen in der Wildnis weiterzugeben. Emil hat besondere Fähigkeiten in der Muskikauswahl und der Abstimmung auf die Bilder, so dass wir das Erlebte als gefühlte Atmosphäre weitergeben können. So können wir unsere Zuschauer in die Wildnis entführen.

Gleichzeitig gibt es mir die Möglichkeit über wichtige Naturschutzprojekte zu sprechen und auch auf direkte Gefahren für einige der Wildnis-Regionen, in denen ich arbeite, hinzuweisen. Das Rückmeldungen bisher waren überwältigend! Gerade gestern habe ich wieder eine ganz besondere  Email erhalten, von der ich einen kleinen Auszug zitieren will: ” Selten habe ich Menschen um mich herum so mitfiebern sehen. Die Geschichte vom Karibu-Kalb, die Wölfe und Bären, das, was Du von Euch erzählt hast – grandios ! …….
Von der Macht der Bilder bin ich immer überzeugt gewesen, doch dass sie so eine intensive Wirkung haben können, dass sie direkt “ins Herz gehen “, hätte ich nicht für möglich gehalten ! “

Über 1600 Besucher bei der Mundologia in Freiburg - bisher unser größtes Publikum

Vor Jahren habe ich einmal einen Zeitungsartikel über die Fotografie im Zeitalter des Films geschrieben. Obwohl ich auch kleine Filmabschnitte in meinem Vortrag habe, wurde mir wieder klar wie besonders das stehende Bild ist. Man kann einfach die Augen eine Weile lang auf den Fotografien ruhen lassen. So kann man z.B. den heruaspringenden Wal wirklich erfassen. Das Medium des “Life-Vortrags” bringt etwas ruhe in unseren hektischen Alltag.

"Ruf der Wildnis II" bei der Mundologia 2011

Die Zeit der Vorträge ist nun vorbei und ich werde mich nun wieder auf die Arbeit im Feld konzentrieren. Falls Sie bei Ruf der Wildnis waren, bedanke ich mich für Ihr Kommen. Hoffentlich dann bis zu unserer nächsten Show über die Arktis.

The pemiere of our "Call of the Wild" show at the WunderWelten Festival

It took a number of weeks of concentrated work until Emil and I had finished our new multimedia presentation “Call of the Wild II”.  As a child I was inspired by Jack London to explore the wilds of North America with his picturesque language. We presented our premiere at the WunderWelten-Festival on the 7th of November 2010 in Friedrichshafen at Lake Constance. It was an incredible experience to see how many people flocked to the event until I stood in front of a sold-out hall with 1000 guests. The giant screen brought the images to life. In the new show, I had the opportunity to share my experiences in the wilderness of North America between Alaska and Baja California, with the audience.

WunderWelten was followed by a tour through Switzerland with over 18 events, other presentations in North America and Festivals in Germany. In the course of the last 3 months I was able to share my images and stories with over 7000 people. I have to be honest – being on stage day after day can be tiring, yet I became to love this medium of the “live-presentation”. It is very special. People experience the images, stories and the message in a very different way from a documentary on TV or a film in the movies.

Florian speaking at a Earthjustice event in the Times Building in New York City

It was a great experience for me to turn some of our most memorable experiences from our travels and expeditions into a multimedia presentation. It gave me the opportunity to travel back to the different locations through my mind and remember what I felt at the time. When we prepare the show we take special care to reproduce the  atmosphere of weather and light. Emil has a special ear for the ideal music that goes well with the images to reflect the mood of a place. This way we are able to take our audience out into the wilderness with us.

At the same time, I have the chance to talk about important environmental issues and specific threats to wilderness areas I am documenting. The feedback has been overwhelming. I just received another wonderful email yesterday: ” Seldom have I experience the people around me so involved. The story of the Caribou, the wolves and bears, an all the stories you were sharing – magnificent ! …. I always was certain that images had immense power, but I had absolutely no idea, that they could have such an incredible impact, that they go directly  “into the heart” ; that I would have never seen possible in such intensity ! “

With over 1600 people our larges audience to date at the Mundologia Festival in Freiburg, Southern Germany

Years ago I wrote a newspaper article about still images in the era of the moving picture. Even though I also have included some film clips, I once again realized the power of the still image. The eye can rest and absorb the photograph. The medium of the live presentation brings some calmness into our hectic society.

Our show "Call of the Wild II" at the Mundologia 2011

The time of presentations this spring has come to an end now. We now have to concentrate on our field work until the fall – when we will have a new series of shows.

I am just back from the field. For over 2 weeks I traveled out on the sea ice and the fjords of Svalbard, camping in Polar Bear country. As I am typing I feel my finger tips tingling, still half numb from the cold. I am completely exhausted for a lack of sleep and the constant cold coupled with wind. In my search of special light I stayed up with my guide throughout  many nights out on the ice.

Following fresh polar bear tracks, Svalbard.

A high pressure system provided us with good weather and magical sunlight during the midnight hours. During the night the soft rays of the sun changed from a light yellow orange to pastel colored purple. The white blanket of snow lend itself as a blank piece of canvas to an ever changing show of colors, all orchestrated by the sun.

While the wonderful light kept me from sleeping at night, it was the possibility of an unexpected polar bear visit, that kept us awake during the day. As much as we all wanted, we could not just crash into our tent and sleeping bags. The risk of a bear visit was just to high. The thin tent wall was only protection from the wind but not for a curious polar bear. So we had to take turns polar bear guarding if we wanted to get some sleep. And that bears were around, we were reminded constantly by tracks zigzagging the pack ice. So I had my share of turns sitting around camp armed with a “polar bear pistol” loaded with cracker shells.

Florian stands on a giant iceberg to scan for Polar Bears, Svalbard.

Next to the landscape it was especially the arctic wildlife that I was seeking to photograph. Many hours a day I spent high up on a giant iceberg that calved from one of the surrounding glaciers, hoping to spot a polar bear that would wonder in our direction. It was one of my favorite places as I enjoyed an incredible view of the “Negre” Glacier front that continues on for many miles. The gull-like Fulmars were using the little uplifting winds around the ice berg walls, gliding by my observation post.

While out waiting, one has a lot of time making up imaginary images. I was hoping for an encounter with a polar bear with the magic light of the late night hours. But soon the time at the East Coast Glacier came to an end without finding a bear in this magic light, non-the-less close by. To see a bear at all proofed to become quite a challenge. My patience was being tested but I planned to return to the same place a week later to try my luck again. I did not want to let my hopes down – and I had the feeling persistence would eventually pay off.

So we packed up camp and started to head back towards a track across the grand glaciers to head up towards the northern part of the Spitzbergen Island. In a matter of hours the weather deteriorated and icy wind blew down the glacier bringing dark heavy clouds with it. It began to snow as we started the trek.

Florian looks trhough a curtain of frozen needles inside the glacier cave, Svalbard.

With our guide Christopher we are getting the first impressions of the Svalbard landscape. With four teams of eager and highly energetic sled dogs we are heading out. The mountainous landscape is under a soft blanket of snow. The silence is interrupted only by the barking and yelping of the dog teams. We are planning to travel up to a glacier and enter through a narrow cave deep into the center of the frozen body of ice.

Sled dogs doing what they love the most, pulling!

The dogs had had a good rest before our trip and so the are ready to go. It is all that is on their mind. Everything needs to be tightly tied down on the sleds and before we give the go, we need to tie it down with a “ice hook” so that the dogs don`t take off with the sled by themselves. Once the sled is off the hook, the dogs take off like a bullet. The only way to slow the sled down is to push down on an iron plow-like break that digs itself into the snow.

Ice formations inside a glacier cave, Svalbar

Once the sled is on the go all the dogs are completely focused on pulling. Every individual wants to do its part and not lack behind. I guess that is what they are bread for. Pulling is what is on their mind. We make it up to the cave. I have little idea of what to expect. As my eyes start to adapt to the darkness I see a wonderful sculptured cave landscape. In some areas water must have melted late in the season and has created incredible ice sculptures. With my flashlight I am painting over the formations, leaving the curtain of my camera open for over one minute. The image that appears on the back of the viewfinder reminds me of a “Cathedral of Ice”.

As the water trickles inside, it glides over the icy surface and creates frozen needles hanging from the sealing of the cave. Svalbard

I had a small tripod with which it was easy to enter some of the narrow cavities. I used a cable release with a lock mechanism so I could keep have exposure times of 1 to 2 minutes. Another key was the more neutral colored LED light of my headlamp. It allowed for a more curate rendering of the colors.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Wrapped in layers of clothes I am laying on my stomach, watching a large group of longhaired beasts, that seemed to be from a prehistoric world. The wind has picked up in the course of the night to 40 miles and hour. It whips up the mountain sides and sweeps up small ice crystals that hit my skin like needles. In different areas blowing snow becomes thick and travels across the ground like a ghost of fog.

As parts of my face start to get colder and want to turn numb; and my hands can’t handle my camera anymore, I am thinking how lucky I am to be hit with this weather. It is these types of conditions, that I was hoping for. In my photography I really want to convey a sense of place – take people out into the field with me. For that, my images need to convey the harsh weather conditions, the powerful elements of the wind and the cold.

I am laying on the ground to get a unique perspective. The blowing snow creates this mystical atmosphere and ads to my interpretation of an animal that rather belongs to a children’s fairytale than to this world. I also have learned that the Muskoxen are much less mindful of my presence if I stay low to the ground. They often just eye me with curiosity.

As I am out there observing them many hours a day, I become ever more fascinated. What puzzles me the most is how they can live of a few lichen on the barren tundra, that they scratch up from underneath the snow. How can they possibly receive sufficient energy from this bit of vegetation to withstand constant arctic winter conditions?

What gets me even more, is that I seem to always find them on the most exposed and windy spots on the mountain sides and hilltops. They appear completely indifferent to the wind and the cold. It becomes obvious how well they have adapted to their environment. Their wool apparently has 6 times the insulating qualities of regular wool. No wonder they stay warm.

I am wrapped in several layers of underwear, polar fleece and outer shells that keep me warm. I had never paid much attention to high-tech clothes in the past. Part of that was probably the price tag: out of reach for a broke photographer who spends all of his money on camera gear. This time around however, I had received a sample of Patagonia´s winter clothes. I have to say I was totally impressed. The combination of inside layers and outer shells completely kept any wind from getting to me. It allowed me to hang out with the muskox patiently waiting for those special moments that make up a great image.

It has been several years now that I have worked on my second Freedom to Roam project. During the project I had the incredible chance to focus a lot of my energy on the Alaskan Arctic. Through the project I was able to document areas in great depth for months. For me the Arctic has such a draw, because it is such a vast open landscape that has very little human presence. Many places are true wilderness areas.

Besides Alaska I had the chance to travel to several other arctic locations throughout Canada. I had the secret wish to sometime do a project that would allow me to spend a lot more time in different Arctic and Sub-Arctic locations. There is just so much drama up north. From the winter skies filled with the Aurora Borealis, to the eternal sun of summer. From desolate frozen landscapes where polar bears thrive even in the midst of winter to the arctic tundra in summer which is teaming with life with the bodies of hundreds of thousands of Caribou and migratory birds.

It looks like there is a very good chance that this dream of expanding my work in the arctic dramatically may come true this year. I would be focusing 150% of my energy shooting locations between Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Svalbard. Together with my publisher Braided River books we have been talking about the possibility to collaborate with a fantastic partner to create a book on the Arctic. This partnership would allow us to reach a very broad general public and give insights into Arctic ecosystems and the threat they are facing due to global warming. This is specially important during a time, where vast part of the population is questioning the role humans play in the climate change crises.

So please stay tuned and check in for updates. We should know for sure here in a couple o days. As I am counting on this to go through, I have already continues my work in the Alaskan Arctic this year and am catching a plane to Svalbard, high up in the European Arctic, in a few hours. So if this goes through, you should be able to follow me around to some of the most spectacular locations in the circumpolar arctic.

Even though I have continued my work on F2R – B2B this year already, we would be pushing the book and the project out one more year, as we do not want to cut the documentation of some of important missing locations short.

It is the time of the year that the Grey Whales are making their journey back north migrating some 6000 miles along America`s west coast from Baja California to the Bering Sea. The grey whale is one of the flagship species representing my “B2B – Freedom to Roam” project. They literally migrate the entire distance twice a year. It is the longest migration undertaken by any mammal on the planet. For me it was really important to document this migration story as part of the project.

Thousands of whales return to the lagoon systems of Baja California every year.  It is where the mating takes place and where pregnant Grey Whale mothers give birth to their calves. Over the past 2 years I spent several weeks in the different lagoons of Laguna Ojo de Liebre, San Ignacio and Bahia Magdalena to get  a true insight into this part of the whale`s life. It is magical how the lagoons come to life with the whales.

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SPRING MIGRATION – HEADING NORTH

It is the time of the year now, that the whales are heading back north. Males start leaving the lagoons as early as February, followed by the females without calves in early March and eventually by the females with calves in late March and April. Traveling an average of 75 miles a day the journey back north takes them about 2 to 3 moths.

I had a “slight” change of plans and instead of staying in Baja California until May I am heading north to the Arctic myself. I am planning to photograph arctic wildlife, while the landscape is still frozen and the animals are shown in the arctic elements.

THE WINGED MIGRATION

I have been working on my second Freedom to Roam project ” B2B – The Wild Coast ” for a few years now. This spring I came back again to Baja California to photograph aspects of the massive migration that takes part along America`s West Coast. I was specifically interested in the different shore birds and waterfowl that rely upon a “daisy-chain” of wetlands on their migration to their nesting grounds up north in the high arctic. A lot of the habitats are in tidal zones along the coast. They are facing different pressures from encroaching development and the possibility of significant sea-level rise in the coming decades. For me the migrations symbolize the interconnectedness of the natural world like few other phenomenons.

In comparison to legged land mammals, birds have the incredible advantage of wings that lets them overcame huge distances of unsuitable habitat or developed landscapes. They however cannot master the enormous migrations without adequate reserves of energy. Migratory birds are dependent on important habitat that lets them consume large quantities of high energy food in a short period of time. It is therefore essential we set aside such important migratory bird sanctuaries that allows migratory birds to stop over in the course of their long migrations.

Migration hotspots can be found all along the west coast. One of the most famous locations for the Western Sandpipers is the Copper River Delta near Cordova, Alaska. Several million western Sandpipers make a stopover there before they continue their journey to the arctic.

I have been asked to provide our most striking wildlife image from last year. I wanted to ask around to get a more neutral approach, because I have fallen in love with all of this ones. So I thought writing a blog post might be the best way!

So I just need to know, from your perspective which ones from the following images, you think is the most striking wildlife shot!

Please try to be as selective as possible, that way I already can see what is worth sending and whit what I can spare some time.  If it gets published, I will let you know :0) Just click on the comments below, and you will find a form to send me the # number of your favorite image.

Thanks for your help! Here are the images:

#1 Caribou migration from the air. Alaskan Arctic:

#2 Aerial perspective of Murres swimming over icy waters. Alaskan Arctic.

#3 Munk’s Devil Ray congregation. Baja, Mexico.

#4 Ringed Seals resting over ice caps. Alaskan Arctic.

#5 Aerial perspective of two huge Fin whales launch feeding. Baja, Mexico.

#6 A wild mexican female jaguar patrols her territory close to Calakmul Biosphere Reserve,  Mexico.

click on comments below and send me the # number of your favorite shot! Thanks for your help! My deadline is next Monday

By the hundreds of thousands members of the Western Arctic Caribou Herd fill valley after valley, Nikon D3x, 24-70mm f2.8

Barren Ground Grizzly wandering the edge of the Arctic Refuge. Nikon D3x, 600mm f4 VR lens

Far away from the centers of our civilization lies a land of wonder, where hundreds of thousands of caribou roam the plains, where myriads of birds migrate to rear their chicks and where the kingdoms of grizzly and polar bears meet. It is America’s vast Arctic, far removed from the rest of the world, but heavily affected by humankind.

Thousands of murres gather on pools on the ice awaiting the nesting season on the nearby cliffs; Nikon D3x, 70-200mm f2.8

A large lead opens in the Chuckchi Sea between Pt. Hope and Cape Lisburne; Nikon D3x, 24-70mm f2.8

For many years environmental organizations have fought for the protection of the Alaskan arctic, but as the energy crisis worsens, pressure is driving Congress to open this wilderness sanctuary to oil drilling and mining operations. As part of my Freedom to Roam project in connection with the Blue Earth Alliance and Braided River Books, I am  working to produce photographic material in support of the Arctic Conservation Campaign. With compelling imagery I hope we can reach Congress and the general public by showing a true portrait of a land often called a “barren wasteland”.

Sea ice landscape at the edge of the lead. Nikon D3x, 14-24mm f2.8

A polar bear roams the edge of the packice in the Chuckchi Sea. Nikon D300, 200-400mm f4 + TC/E 1.4

After spending many months on the ground amongst hundreds of thousands of caribou, nesting birds and barren ground grizzlies in 2008, I realize, that the only way to cover this massive expanse of land is the aerial perspective. So in 2008 I started to plan a major “Arctic Aerial Expedition”, as part of the 2009 work on the Freedom to Roam project. The goal was to show wildlife in their environment, offering a true representation of the way animals depend on this interconnected ecosystem. My goal was to document the retreating sea ice, the platform for seals, walrus, birds and the polar bear as well as to document the 3 major caribou herds of the arctic slope.

I want to invite you to follow my blog as I am going to share with you some of the amazing experiences I had over the last weeks photographing Alaska`s Arctic. Please pass the info on to friends who are interested in wildlife, conservation, Alaska and photography.